Kathryn Hahn Hopes ‘Private Life’ Sparks More Infertility Discussions: ‘No One Should Go Through It Alone’

Kathryn Hahn reflects on the infertility struggles her ‘Private Life’ character endures, & how the film can start an important conversation about assisted reproduction.

Kathryn Hahn‘s comedic edge still shines through as she stars opposite of Paul Giamatti in Netflix’s Private Life, in which she tackles a prevalent and serious topic — infertility. “I have a tremendous amount of empathy, and my heart is swollen for anybody who has gone through [infertility], in private or with any shame around it,” Kathryn revealed in an EXCLUSIVE interview with HollywoodLife.com at the Gotham Awards in NYC. In Private Life, Kathryn’s Rachel and her husband Richard endure the heartbreak of an adoption that falls through, as well as the financial and emotional strains of assisted reproduction. “Hopefully Private Life will start more of a discussion, because I do feel like the later people are choosing to start their families, these conversations are going to be had more and more,” Kathryn explained. People are deciding to start their families later and later, the more scientific advancements we have in assisted reproductions, the more people are realizing it’s not as easy as it’s told. It’s expensive — it’s not just actually expensive, it’s emotionally expensive — it’s not as easy as we thought and it bears conversation.”

In the film, Rachel and Richard are surprisingly joined by their niece’s half-sister Sadie (Kayli Carter), a 25-year-old college drop out who moves in with the couple to figure her life out. In the Tamara Jenkins-directed film, the unlikely guest becomes a focal point of Rachel and Richard’s ‘campaign to conceive.’ “I hope that more people have these discussions and if this movie opens those discussions, I am thrilled, thrilled thrilled thrilled because no one should have to go through this alone,” Kathryn added. Private Life was nominated for three Gotham Awards, including Kathryn Hahn for Best Actress.